


Hades and Persephone (as told by Zen and Rei)

by DiLithiumDragon



Category: Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Arguing, Eventual Romance, F/M, Inaccurate Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Mixing Canon with Mythology, POV Alternating, POV Second Person, POV Third Person, Sick Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-29
Updated: 2019-11-01
Packaged: 2021-01-08 04:15:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21229643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DiLithiumDragon/pseuds/DiLithiumDragon
Summary: In a realm of Gods and Goddesses of all mythologies, the youngest son of Chronos has been given the task to reap the soul of one of their own. Hades has always been an obedient son, but this withered flower is a little different than anything else he's encountered.





	1. The Reaper

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea how to tag this I am so sorry  
If anyone wants to help me with that, I'd really appreciate it  
(this is also un-beta'd, so sorry in advance for any typos or weirdness I missed)
> 
> Other than that, this is exactly what it says on the tin.  
I love Zen and Rei, so I hope this communicates that well enough.

[Part 1 - The Reaper]

"She's withering, Demeter."

You hear Chronos' voice, clear and emotionless, and you hesitate just a moment before going ahead and entering the throne room. He sits upon it as Demeter, in a scorching rage befitting of this summer, aims her fury wholly upon him. "She's mine to deal with as I see fit. I'm her mother!"

"And soon, she will belong to the Underworld." Chronos replies, unmoved and stalwart. "You've failed to blossom her, and thus her soul shall be returned to the flow of time."

"If you dare steal her from me, I will tear down this whole Tower and decapitate you in front of all your sons." She turns on you and you can't help but flinch back a step. "You can't have her. I won't allow it!"

She then storms out of the room, her fires crackling as she goes until the echoes are distant and gone. You don't quite understand why she would so adamantly resist the natural flow of time, especially for a simple flower, but the place is not yours to wonder these things.

Instead, you continue further inside until you are standing at Chronos' throne, ready for his address.

"Your brothers couldn't make it, I suppose." He grumbles to himself, then continues louder. "I have a task for you, Hades. Will you accept?"

There's only one option. "Of course, father. Whatever you wish."

//

You find her sitting in bed by an open window. Her hair is bleached white, though you're certain it wasn't her choosing. Her skin is pale and sickly, her eyes hollow and sunken. You understand how your father could call her withered now and are even more perplexed as to why Demeter would want to keep her in this state at all. Her appearance alone looks to be one of great suffering. Why force her to persist like this?

You approach the window until you're right by it before announcing, "It looks like you're dying."

Not quite the most eloquent way to put it, as Zeus and Poseidon have teased you about, but you find that being direct gets straight to the point. She seems startled by your appearance (and you briefly wonder if she gets to see others very often; Demeter is known for being quite controlling, after all), then she quietly asks, "What did you say?"

Perhaps you weren't clear enough? Or the shock caused her to mishear you. Either way, you're willing to reiterate. "I said, you look ready to die. I've come to ferry you to the Underworld, you see."

"Ah."

She bows her head, an even emptier look to her than before. You wait a minute for her to react further, but she doesn't. She simply sits there in silence, neither accepting nor denying your claim.

Perhaps, for the first time in your existence, you're unnerved at this unnatural reaction. It's not one you've ever received before. And, of course, your inability to understand this makes you want to find some sort of explanation.

"Um. Usually." You find yourself saying. "Beings attempt to argue with me over this. Especially those parented by the Gods. They like to bargain, to try to win their rights to their souls. And those who don't resist usually greet me with happiness. Or find solace in knowing their end has arrived."

You pause, looking for any sort of reaction. She remains silent and unmoving. As if she's not even hearing you. Again, you're both perturbed and intensely intrigued. As such, you continue talking, as if your ramblings might draw out a response from her.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. The Underworld is just the passageway through which most souls pass through on their way to begin anew. Time flows ever on, after all, as long as Chronos keeps watch from his Clock Tower. Though your time has come, another's will start anew from your soul."

She remains silent. This is starting to become worrying. Grasping at something, anything, you finally ask the questions you're not supposed to bother with, practically begging.

"How -- How did you come to be in this condition? What is your name? Please, say something."

She finally moves, looking you straight in the eyes. However, she still says nothing. There's pain in her expression, but it's muted by an overwhelming despair. You see, in her eyes, a longing to scream or cry or react in some way, but without the proper means to do so. She's trapped inside herself in a sense and the look is haunting enough to make you stumble back and away from the window altogether.

You don't know why, but you want to know how she got to this point. You want to know why she reacts in this way as none ever have to your appearance before. And, most curiously, you want to make her speak so she might tell all this to you herself.

The door to the room opens, however, and you have to flee. Demeter walks in, closes the window and draws the curtains, and you head for the Clock Tower to make your report.

"Why have you returned without her soul?" Chronos questions you upon your return.

You reply simply, "Demeter arrived before I had the chance."

He accepts this and you're allowed to head to the Underworld to check on the day's progression. Nemesis cares for Cerberus in your absence, thankfully, and your station is secluded enough in the garden that you don't have to bother with anyone in order to save time. The Shinigami do a marvellous job of collecting souls, leaving you with all the paperwork and confirming the ones they weed out for purgatory and Satanael to deal with. Then you check to see which ones have finished their sentences before allowing them back into the flow of souls.

The loop is elegant and repetitive. Like time itself, a veritable metronome that is predictable and beautiful. You're eager to find out why this withered flower wouldn't jump at the chance to restart and experience a new, less painful life. Or how Demeter could insist on allowing her to persist in such a painful-looking state.

That eagerness is unnatural, but you'll willingly ignore that for now. It was a job assigned specifically to you. And you'll perform with the elegance Chronos expects from his most obedient son.


	2. The Flower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She hates her life, but she clings desperately to it. This Reaper can't take that from her as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my long-standing efforts to tell everyone I possibly can about how great Persona Q's story really is, here's a lot of that in Rei's character and her thoughts in this chapter.  
I'm really serious, Rei's character arc/reveal alone is fantastic enough to warrant the price of all the cringey fan service that happens in PQ. If it wasn't, I wouldn't have wanted to write for her (and Zen. Zen is my fave, too) or consider them canon to anything P4 related in my mind.  
(this is un-beta'd, too, so. have fun with that. ;; )

[Part 2 - The Flower]

She had long since withered, but her mother refused time and time again to allow her to leave. Demeter was the Goddess of the seasons and harvest, after all. How could she allow one of her very own daughters to wither like this? Her pride would be hurt, and thus she shut Persephone away, hiding her from the rest of the world and resenting her all the while.

"You never should have been born to me." Demeter spat out as she reluctantly brang Persephone's meals to her. "Humans are the ones susceptible to such illnesses. Not us Gods. You're such a disgrace to my name that if I hadn't birthed you myself, I'd deny any part in your creation."

The words stung, even if Persephone was used to hearing them by now. She thought of spending an eternity here, beneath her mother's scorn, and wished she could just die all ready.

Her spirit, however, refused.

She has done nothing of substance with her short life. She has seen nothing, contributed nothing, met no one, and found nothing. She has no purpose for existing, yet here she is. Why was she born in such a way? Why would the Fates allow something like this to happen?

Until she could find an answer, she was sure her soul would refuse to go quietly.

Then, one day, a cloaked man appeared at her window and proclaimed it was her time to die. She wanted to scream, but couldn't quite have the strength, too lost in her despair. And he left without claiming her soul.

The next day, he returned. And she realised she had no intentions of going with him.

"I've returned." He said, simple and forward to a near robotic degree. "You must come with me to rejoin the flow of time. You're ready to die."

He looked almost silly to her, wearing that black cloak with the hood nearly covering his face and the studded spiked collar around the neck. He didn't even offer out his hand to take her. She frowned in thought a moment before saying, "You all ready know my name."

He seemed perplexed at her answer. At her finally being willing to speak. As such, she proceeded to clarify.

"You came for me yesterday, then today you came again. Therefore, you all ready know my name. Yet, I don't know yours. Is it just a 'Mister Death'?"

He struggled a moment with what to say, then replied, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude before. Proper introductions are indeed in order. I am Hades, son of Chronos and Overseer of the Underworld."

He bowed shortly to her. He was one of the big three, then. She could humour him for a bit. "I'm Persephone. Glad we've cleared this up."

"I." He paused, no doubt restructuring his statement. After figuring it out, he nodded and tried again. "You're able to talk. That will be helpful."

She soured at the sentiment, scoffing softly. "How could it be? I've no reason to talk if you're planning to reap my soul. Nor will I have anyone to talk with once I've entered the River."

"That's true." He bowed his head, appearing flustered while his voice remained just as emotionless as it had been from the start. "However. If I may. How did you end up withering under Demeter's care?"

"I don't know." She shook her head as the thoughts of her mother flooded into her mind. The more that surfaced, the more her desperation grew. "She's the Harvest Goddess, right? So why should her second child wither away like this when her first child grew up to become successful and healthy? When her other three children were also just fine? What was it that made me such a failure? How could my life have been so meaningless right up to my death?"

She wanted to cry, but her body didn't have the energy. It was such a useless husk at this point that she wasn't surprised at all that he'd come to reap her soul. He seemed at a loss for words yet again, so she aimed her next outcry directly at him.

"Tell me! You've come to reap my soul, so tell me. What was the point of my life? Why did I die after contributing nothing? Why did I exist?"

He didn't seem willing to give her an answer, and her shouting had drawn her mother over. She was distracted in looking over as her mother barged into her room; when she looked back, Hades was gone.

Demeter closed the window and the curtains yet again, adamant to keep Persephone hidden from the world. Adamant to hide her biggest failure. Were all Gods this selfish and prideful? If that was the case, then Persephone much preferred the characters of fairytales, like Alice or the White Rabbit. Their goals, at least, were much clearer and easier to understand.

The next day, after being left alone, Persephone opened the window once again. She liked to at least see the life outside and feel the cool breeze against her face, even if it was all very unreachable for her. Now, though, she was curious to see if Hades would come again.

Sure enough, sometime around midday, he did.

She hadn't been paying attention, too lost in her own thoughts, when his black cloak came into view right at the window. They stared at each other for a minute or so, waiting for the other to go first. He had very bright blue eyes, a stark contrast against his black hood and darker skin. Yet he didn't look any more alive than she did. Was that a requirement for being the Overseer of the Underworld?

Finally, he spoke. "I don't have an answer to your question."

She was taken aback by such a blunt opener. And without thinking, replied immediately, "You make a terrible reaper, Mister Hades."

He bowed his head, hiding his eyes from her. "I thought all night about your question, but could find no answer to it. After all, outside of the job I was assigned, I could not explain my own existence either." He shook his head, then looked back up to meet her eyes. "You're correct, though. We're not supposed to really talk to the souls we collect. Getting to know them is a fruitless endeavour, since they will soon be reborn as a different soul once our job is complete."

She frowned, even more confused. "We?"

"The other reapers and I." He clarified. "The world is vast, so I employ the Shinigami and others to help reap the souls. Time moves ever onward in the realm of the living, so even a God cannot do everything they're tasked with on their own."

That made sense, she supposed. It struck her as odd, still, and she asked, "Why come after me yourself instead of sending one of them? Aren't you wasting time by talking to me?"

His expression shifted to one of annoyance for just a moment before going back to its carefully neutral. "Chronos requested I specifically handle your case. Demeter is being quite troublesome about this, even going so far as to set up certain wards that the Shinigami despise enough that they refuse to come near here at all."

Of course. Her mother would be the cause of all this. She had to fight back the bitterness welling up in her throat at the thought of it all. When that wasn't enough, she let it out instead. "She calls me 'Niko' when she thinks I can't hear her. Do you know what that means? 'Second child'. She can't even give me a good proper name, she's so ashamed of me. Sometimes, she'll ask me, 'Why did I even birth a wretched thing like you?' And I can't help but wonder the same thing."

He kept his head bowed, remaining silent and simply listening to her. In a fit of rage, she whirled on him, standing up from her bed.

"If you can't understand how your existence is different from mine, then I refuse to go with you. If you can't find me an answer as to why I'm even here when my life was wasted away for me, then I can't die yet. I can't die yet because then my life will have been completely meaningless! I couldn't take that!"

"Persephone, darling, what do you think you're doing?"

Again, her screeching brought her mother over. And, again, by the time she looked back, Hades had disappeared before Demeter could reach the window.

She forced Persephone back into bed, then closed the window again and sat on the foot of the bed in order to address her. "All that sunlight only negatively affects your health, you know this. You're sick enough as it is, but if someone saw you on top of that!" Demeter recoiled, pressing a hand to her chest. "I shudder to think of the fright they'd receive, not to mention my reputation being ruined."

Persephone thought to mention Hades and how Demeter's efforts were all ready being thwarted, but kept silent. If she revealed that, Demeter would just suffocate her even more.

"You must stay here and remain quiet." Demeter continued, standing up and heading towards the door. "I'll be back with your meal in just a bit, so be a good child and stop wilting. I'll fix you yet, my dear."

She left and Persephone wanted to scream. It had been decided! Persephone should've all ready been dead! Chronos had made the decree and Hades knew! They couldn't hide it anymore!

At the same time, she wasn't ready to let go of her life. Not until she could find a suitable answer for all of it.

The next day, even though she opened her window, Hades never showed up. She wondered if maybe he'd given up, if he'd decided she was too difficult a soul to collect. Perhaps he'd simply decided to condemn her to an eternal Hell of her mother's choosing.

Being stuck inside, hidden away from the world, unable to live or die. What a fitting end for such a meaningless life as hers.

She didn't bother opening the window the next day. At least, not until there was a gentle knock against the glass. She was hesitant to appear too eager (despite being there to officially kill her, he was the only other person she could talk to) and took her time climbing out of bed in order to open the curtains. Of course, there at her window in his black hooded cloak, was Hades.

Carefully, she opened the window and leaned against the sill. "You didn't come yesterday." She chastised.

"My apologies." He replied. He seemed to genuinely mean it, too.

"I thought you'd given up." She prompted.

He grimaced very slightly, his gaze turning off to the side. "My brothers were pestering me all day. I didn't have a chance to do much else besides the paperwork after all their tomfoolery."

His speech seemed less formal than last time, somehow, and the fact that he was even willing to give her his excuse seemed like a step forward. She asked, "Your siblings are Zeus and Poseidon, right?"

After a minute's hesitation, he nodded. "That's correct. I'm the youngest of the three of us, and as such they insist on interfering with my work whenever they have a chance."

Clearly, he didn't think he should be telling her this. Yet he was. She found herself smiling and she settled herself onto the windowsill in a more comfortable position. "I told you that I had siblings, but I only know my older sister's name. Amaterasu, Goddess of the Summer Sun. She was the only one I got to know before my health began deteriorating and my mother."

She stopped herself there with a sour expression. Anytime she reminded herself of what Demeter had done to her was an unwelcome thought. Hades watched her carefully a minute, his blue eyes focused and calculating. Then he said, "Demeter's three other children, your younger siblings, are Hana, Yoh, and Yuki."

"That makes one for every season." She chuckled humourlessly. "And then there's me, who's not even suitable to be called a Goddess because I'm dying."

The whole thing was such a laughable situation that it pained her to be too tired to laugh at it. Her existence had never had a point in the first place. She was just being selfish by denying death like this. Exactly the same as her mother. Hades, with a confused tilt of his head, asked, "Why do you persist?"

She'd been asking herself the same thing. Still, the question took her by surprise and she blinked down at him owlishly. "What?"

"You continue to persist, despite acknowledging that you are dying." He looked straight into her eyes, as if seeing directly to her soul. "Why keep yourself in pain when it would be easier to surrender yourself back to the cycle? Why search for any meaning when to have lived was enough? Life itself exists throughout the passage of time and needs not a reason to continue as it does."

"You can say that because you're still alive!" She shouted, growing aggravated at his lack of emotion. "You have a purpose! I lived and accomplished nothing, saw nothing, knew nothing except for misery and sickness! To die after all this would be nothing but despair!"

He seemed perturbed by her outburst. Before he could think of how to reply, she slammed the window shut on him and covered his sight with the curtains. She climbed back into her bed and cried angry, bitter tears, even when Demeter finally showed up with her next meal.

Whether she lived or died, it didn't matter. Being reborn back into this cycle of pain and misery would do nothing. After everything she'd endured, dying was just the perfect encapsulation of how meaningless it all had been.

And she couldn't do a single thing to change any of it.


	3. The Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Between them was a dangling conversation; they were verses out of rhythm, couplets out of rhyme, and definitely out of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween! I guess!  
not sure if this feels too rushed or not. but then again, I feel like all of my writing is rushed.

[Part 3 - The Escape]

The next time Hades came knocking, she ignored it. She'd seen enough of him by now to know that he wasn't worth the time in her day.

He knocked exactly three times, each one as gentle and rhythmic as the ticking of a clock, then didn't persist. Mainly because he appeared inside her room with a swirl of his cloak instead.

She squeaked in surprise, the best she could manage as her throat had given out on her after shouting and crying the previous day. He stood there a moment, thinking of how best to say anything after that, before settling on a simple, "My apologies. You didn't answer."

She glared up at him and started, "That's because--!"

However, she devolved into coughing and couldn't finish her statement. He glanced briefly around her room, frowning in particular at her bedside lamp, then turned his gaze back on her. "I find the conversation you provide fascinating. In fact, I find you to be the most intriguing being I've ever had the opportunity to communicate with."

She grimaced at his phrasing and continued glaring at him. He, of course, didn't at all seem to get her meaning and continued on unbothered.

"Conversation usually serves only as a means for enacting transactions. A way for others to convey what they want from me. Father wants me to reap certain souls. My brothers want to see me annoyed. The dead wish to bargain for their lives." He paused a moment to stare at the door, then looked back to her. "But you don't bargain. You discuss with me as if I'm another being of equal status, asking after my name, my brothers, and telling me your own information in return. It's an exchange that feels balanced for once. Even if there's nothing balanced at all about our positions."

He spoke with an odd energy, almost sounding like he had emotion for once. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't impressed, but she maintained her sour mood and forced out a simple, "I'm angry at you."

She coughed again, her throat just getting more scratched up from the strain. He faltered a moment, then persisted past that. "I'm sorry I can't give you the answer you wish for. And I'm sorry for extending your suffering like this."

He approached suddenly and sat down at her bedside, quite daring a move considering her current attitude towards him. He stared directly into her eyes, a little too close for comfort. She didn't recoil, like she should have. She allowed him to stay there, to pull off his hood and take her hands gently into his own. His warmth was such a surprise that she didn't even think of pulling away.

"Please. If you would allow it. I'd like to continue conversing like this just a bit longer."

Before giving it any real thought, she nodded in agreement. He drew back, releasing her hand and standing up, his eyes somehow brighter with something unreadable. The same sort of energy as the tone of his voice. And he was smiling for once, exhilarated.

"I'll return tomorrow. See you then, Persephone."

Within the blink of an eye, just like that, he was gone. Immediately, she missed his warmth and was at a loss on what to do now. Did he really think them equals now? Could they even be anything of the sort considering the positions they found themselves in? Did he think it that simple?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became and she even set herself off into another fit of coughing. That seemed to draw Demeter over and then she wasn't sure which of them was the worse option.

He was meant to kill her. Yet he boldly claimed that he wished to continue talking with her. She wasn't ready to die yet after such a useless life, but perpetuating this longer than it had to be was cruel in its own right. At least they shared a terrible weakness of bad decision making. Common ground, at last.

He was there once more the next day, just as he'd said, knocking at her window. The previous day's rest had done her well, as she decided to open the window for him this time. He'd certainly proved that it wasn't a deterrent for him when he was so damn determined, that was for sure.

Once she'd opened the window and leaned against the sill, staring down at him in what she hoped was a clear enough judgement, he reached up and offered her a red fruit that she'd never seen before. She instantly forgot that she was supposed to be upset with him and stared down at it in confusion, accepting it automatically into her hands. The skin was hard, not really made for biting directly into it. And though it was round, it was bumpy and had an opening on one end, like a half-bloomed flower.

Unable to figure it out, she looked to him for an explanation. He obliged her quite immediately, saying, "This is a fruit from the Underworld. My realm." He paused a moment, then held out his hand for it. She returned it to him and he busied himself with snapping it open. "I thought, perhaps, you might like to try it as it's something from outside of your known realm. The meat is around the seeds, so it's a little odd compared to other fruits you'd peel up here."

He showed her the split halves, which were bursting with juicy seeds just as he'd described. The casing just beneath the skin looked the same as an apple in colour, but not at all the same in texture. She picked out one of the seeds, marvelling at how the skin was remarkably similar to a grape, then smiled knowingly at him. "This won't trap me into some contract with you, will it?"

"I'm not accustomed to making such trades, so no." He shook his head at some memory, then went back to explaining in a more neutral tone. "This fruit grows best in the Underworld's environment and isn't poisonous or deadly. It simply enjoys the darker nutrients of the soil and the lake's water."

She laughed and popped the seed into her mouth. "You sure know more about it than I was expecting."

The seed itself crunched, but the fruit was otherwise mostly juice and tasted divine. It was possibly the best thing she'd ever tasted, perhaps because it was so foreign and new. Embarrassed, he bowed his head, which she was somewhat glad to see as he'd kept his hood off, and said, "I've been. Trying to take better care of the garden in my home. So that it may provide me company while I'm doing my work."

She ate a few more, her smile turning sad. "Does it get lonely down there?"

Even when her mother was fussing over her near constantly, Persephone often felt so isolated and alone that she was sure it had driven her mad years ago. The only reason she hadn't wondered if Hades was even real or a figment of her imagination was because she'd never have come up with such a character to piss herself off. He seemed befuddled by her question and asked, in return, "Why would I be lonely?"

"You just said so yourself, that the plants will keep you company, that's why."

She moved forward, quite boldly, and flicked his forehead. Even without his hood, however, his dark hair hung over his head, completely hiding any hint of eyebrows or forehead. He raised his free hand to where she'd struck, meeting her eyes with an unwavering intrigue. "I suppose. You're right. I hadn't even realised it."

He could be an emotionless blockhead, but she could admit she'd grown fond of him. Even if his inexperience with empathy really pissed her off.

They stared into each other's eyes for a long while. She impulsively wanted to kiss him, but held herself back. Then he glanced away, seemingly distracted by some unseen or unheard thing. "Sorry, I have to go." He said, placing the halves of the fruit down on her windowsill. "Please, enjoy the rest of it. It made you smile."

He stepped back and she could only accept the fruit, suddenly breathless. Then again, his openness that came from his awkward inhumanity helped her be sure of what exactly he wanted from her. Before she could think more about it, she found herself shouting after him, "I'd love to see your garden sometime!"

He smiled at her, much more clear and open now that she could see most of his face. "I'd like that, too."

Then he vanished, leaving her alone to eat the rest of this fruit on her own. She'd meant to ask him for the name of it, but that was fine. They'd have plenty of more chances to talk as he came to talk to her for a while yet. All ready, she was looking forward to his return and eager to spend some more time with him.

Sure, he no longer wanted to reap her soul and grant her the cruel mercy of death, but he was providing companionship now. After so many years of being smothered and of withering, she'd accept that small solace over everything else. That impulse to kiss him was odd, but it definitely cemented her as a child of Demeter. She remembered how Amaterasu would follow impulses that landed them both in trouble, how Demeter would spit in the faces of every other God when it came to a decision she'd impulsively decided on being correct.

She managed to eat every single seed before the husk started rotting at an alarming rate. It seemed that, under the direct light of the sun, it withered. Just the same as her. A fruit of the Underworld, indeed. Demeter came in that night, bringing her dinner, and Persephone thought to ask where exactly the food she ate normally came from. It was always the same every meal, day in and day out, and it had been a long time since she'd considered what it was she was being fed.

Demeter, of course, was almost offended at the question. "It's the greens from the garden's harvest, blended down into a nutritious and easily digestible soup."

Not even trying to hide her disappointment, Persephone mumbled, "Righ. Fresh greens. What else could it be?"

"Don't take that tone with me, young lady." Demeter snapped. "This food is keeping you alive and healthy. In time, it'll even help you recover and bloom once more. Don't you ever dare question my decisions again."

Persephone kept her head down, frustrated but too tired to argue further. Once Demeter left her alone, she laid back in bed and pulled out one of her books to read. It was her favourite, an odd tale of a human girl wandering into a fantastically mad realm and having to overcome the obstacles she came across. Persephone understood this girl's frustration and struggle so well, having desired a misadventure herself and being granted only illogical characters to argue with. At least Hades made much more sense than any of the oddballs in this story.

He didn't return the next day, but he did the day after that. She learned the name of the fruit, a pomegranate, and he asked after her life experiences. As much as she stressed to him that she'd lead a boring life worth nothing of importance, he insisted, and she told him a little more each time he asked.

For five consistent days she saw him, each time less infuriating than the last. Each time he stayed just a little longer, showed just a little more emotion. He told her of his daily routine of paperwork, managing souls, and caring for his garden and the other guardians posted in the Underworld. She told him about the things she missed once she'd started withering, what she wished she could have done if she'd had the chance, how she hadn't yet made up her mind about him.

That was a lie, though. She'd made up her mind by the third day.

Just as she'd resolved to let him know, however, he stopped showing up. Without so much as a note or anything.

The first day, she reasoned he must just be busy with his work. That tended to happen and perhaps his brothers were pestering him once again.

The second day, a steadily rising unease took hold and she started questioning her decision about him. Was he worth this trouble? Could she just be following her impulsiveness about this?

The third day, her unease turned to anger. This was excessive. Something had to be going on and he was going to catch hell for it once he did return. She exhausted every possible way to express her displeasure about this until night fell and she had to settle down in order to sleep. Then the worry came back full force and she found herself hoping he wasn't being punished for refusing to reap her soul.

Then he finally did return. Only, this time, he didn't bother knocking at her window or waiting for her to open it herself. He simply appeared in her room in a whirl of his cloak, looking panicked and breathless.

"They found out." He said in a hurry, before she could even say anything. "Chronos found out. He's furious, he's ordered every Shinigami to come after you and we don't have much time before they arrive."

She frowned at him, perplexed. "What?"

"Come with me." He offered out his hand towards her, desperate and the most emotional she'd ever seen him. "You can't stop. I don't want you to cease. You have to continue to persist!"

She met his wide, scared eyes and, without allowing herself to consider the consequences, accepted his hand. It was partly out of curiosity, as she'd never seen him display this much emotion openly before and wanted to see how far it would take him. But, also, it was because she believed in his impassioned words. She had to continue living until she found an adequate answer to her existence.

He pulled her to her feet and into his cloak. In a whirl of the black fabric, he took her away from this unfulfilling half life and to somewhere unknown. Somewhere away from her controlling mother, his demanding father, and all of the troubles they'd been saddled with.

She'd come to terms with the fact that he'd become special to her. It seemed that she'd become just as special to him over the time they'd spent together, too.


	4. The Haven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He stole her life. There was no leaving now. It was easy to forget the cage around them, at least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wellp! That's it for now. Maybe a weird place to end this, but all that's left is the actual plot of PQ to tackle and that gets not as fun. Also I haven't decided if I want to write all of that or not yet.

[Part 4 - The Haven]

They ended up in a void. A haven of sorts. Empty, devoid of both life and time. Persephone took a step away from Hades, noting that she was neither better nor worse than she'd previously been, then looked back to her captor. "What do you plan to do now?" She asked him.

His cloak had torn, revealing more of himself to her now. His clothes beneath were quite traditional, just a toga that covered half his chest. He'd also calmed down a lot, his earlier panic having subsided now that they were out of danger, and he replied, "I'm not sure."

She smiled wryly up at him in a teasing manner. "You mean you didn't think this through?"

"My immediate thought was simply to get you to safety." He said, meeting her eyes directly. Again, his genuine sentiment struck her and she was caught by the earnestness in his bright eyes. His studded collar still mostly hid his mouth, but his eyes alone were enough to convey all of the emotion he had at his disposal. "The Shinigami won't be able to find us here. And it can be shaped to be whatever you'd like for it to be."

She frowned at that. "I can shape it?"

"Yes."

He nodded in affirmation, as if that cleared everything up. She then asked, "Why me? Why don't you shape it?"

He paused only to settle on the right words to use before replying, "I want you to have control here. Whatever will make you happiest while we're here."

Whatever would make her happiest. There was only one clear answer to that and it was a little too obvious. As if reacting to her decision, the area around them shifted instantly and then they were standing in the empty hallway of a school building. She'd never been able to go to it, but she immediately know it as if she'd gone there alongside Amaterasu.

Hades looked around, a bit puzzled. "A school?"

"Mother told me all about it while my siblings were attending." She shrugged, going straight for the window to look out into the courtyard. There was the clock tower, just as she remembered from hearing about it. "I think she expected me to get better enough to go, too, at some point. How long do you think we'll need to stay here?"

She looked back to him for an answer. He said, "Hopefully, long enough for them to give up their pursuit." He thought for a moment, then added, "We should use different names as well, in case the seal around the area isn't enough."

At this, her interest grew and she walked back over to ask, "Do you not have a proper name, either?"

He shook his head, unwilling to explain himself this time. They were too alike in all the weirdest ways. In an attempt to put a brighter spin on things, she grinned as widely as she could and pointed up at him.

"Then I'll give you one! Is that okay?"

He stared back at her, just as intrigued and shocked as she had been. "I would like that very much."

"Great." She giggled, then thought for a moment. Once the idea hit her, she smiled brightly again. "You're calm and level-headed all the time, so you'll be 'Zen'!"

"Ah. I like that." He nodded decisively, a much more positive and immediate response than she'd been expecting. "It sounds very similar to 'Zhn', so. It's perfect."

"O-Okay. Uh. Good." She floundered, thrown off by his acceptance of her silly and quick decision. Now she had to come up with something for herself. Her mood dampened as her mind supplied her with an obvious choice. "And I'll-I'll be 'Rei'."

She was a zero, after all, in her mother's eyes. A failure of a second child. He -- Zen -- pondered over it a minute before, again, nodding along. "I like that, too. It reminds me of 'Philei'. Perfect for you."

She frowned up at him, incredulous. "What? How can 'happiness' be perfect for me? I'm supposed to have died!"

In her attempt to emphasize her point as much as possible, she threw her arms out widely as an expression of her frustration. He continued to meet her gaze, unflinching and immovable. "When a God takes on a proper name, it's usually a wish for their life, their personality, and their fortune more than anything else." He smoothly explained. "And, above all else, I would wish for your happiness, Rei."

His conviction left her speechless. All she could do was nod along, vaguely agreeing with him.

They took some time to look around the empty school, scouting it out to grow more familiar with the layout. One of the classrooms held nothing but a bed inside right in the middle of the floor and she joked it was for them to enjoy once they grew tired from exploring. He didn't take it as a joke, instead simply explaining that they couldn't get tired in this place. That because this area was created outside of the passage of time, most of the laws of their realm wouldn't apply.

It did mean that her condition wouldn't deteriorate any more, even if it also meant she couldn't get better as well, which she was quietly grateful to hear.

The emptiness really seemed daunting the longer they stayed there. She only needed ruminate about it for a few minutes before finding that, out of the blue, there were suddenly multitudes of faceless other students walking around. None of them reacted to her and seemed to just be window dressing, like shadows, but they certainly did a good job of making this place seem less lonely.

Their appearance had freaked Zen out to the point that he refused to let her go anywhere without him for a while, keeping a firm hold on her hand. So that was a nice little bonus.

They ditched their old clothes to wear the same uniforms as these faceless students, blending in much better. It was impossible to tell how much time had passed since they'd arrived, but it was long enough by now that her previous life's memories had begun to fade.

The more she forgot, the more this place seemed to twist and grow. Zen confined those parts to their own areas and Rei took it upon herself to theme them, making their home seem like a never-ending festival.

And Rei, knowing nothing else, loved it to her heart's content.

As long as Rei had a smile on her face, Zen seemed happy as well. She'd fallen for him hard and there was no turning back from this point on.


End file.
